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Tumor associated blood vessels offer numerous tumor specific targets for therapy. The existence of novel genes expressed in human and murine tumor endothelium has been reported (St Croix, B et al. (2000) Science 289:1197-202; and, Carson-Walter, E B et al. (2001) Cancer Res. 61:6649-55). Gene expression patterns of endothelial cells derived from blood vessels in normal and malignant colorectal tumors were compared by serial analysis of gene expression (SAGE), and 46 genes were identified as specifically up-regulated in tumor-associated endothelium.
Further analysis of these tumor endothelial markers (TEM) showed that the genes for four of these proteins encode putative extracellular domains and contain trans-membrane motifs. Each TEM has human and murine counterparts with considerable sequence homology. Previously, in situ hybridization analysis of human colorectal cancer showed that TEM7R and TEM8 are clearly expressed in the endothelial cells of the tumor stroma but not in the endothelial cells of normal colonic tissue (Carson-Walter, 2001 Cancer Res. 61:6649). These genes are attractive as molecularly validated tumor-related endothelial markers.